Contents

Summary

THE BOND BETWEEN BROTHERS - While Mystic Falls presents a screening of Gone with The Wind in the town square, Damon recalls memories of Katherine in 1864 mixed with the reality of Elena in the present day. Stefan pays a terrible personal price for his attempt to prevent a tragedy, and Sheriff Forbes makes a deadly mistake while trying to keep everyone safe. More than one life hangs in the balance as the consequences of the sacrifice ritual play out to a horrifying conclusion.

Plot

The episode opens with Elena watching Jeremy sleeping. She goes into Jenna's room, but when she wants to leave, she discovers Damon has been waiting for her. He apologizes for feeding her his blood and says that although he doesn't deserve her forgiveness, he needs it. Elena says that she needs time and Damon sadly tells her to take all the time she needs.

He returns home and gets a drink, before opening the curtains. He takes off his ring and stands in the daylight with his arms stretched out, his skin beginning to burn. However, Stefan arrives and pushes him back into the shadows with anger, slamming him into a wall. He refuses to let Damon kill himself and forces him into the cellar. He says he has Bonnie looking for a cure to the werewolf bite sporting his left arm, but Damon tells him just to say goodbye now.

Klaus and Elijah discuss the deal they made about finding family members.

As he begins to cough up blood, Stefan tells him to rest. Meanwhile, Klaus wakes up naked in the empty woods. Elijah explains that he was a werewolf for two days, even when the full moon went. Klaus is happy that he can transform at will and smiles as he reveals that he remembers every kill. Elijah reminds him that they have a bargain - he wants to see the family members Klaus killed. Klaus says that he will follow through with the deal soon enough.

Elsewhere, Alaric gets drunk at the Mystic Grill, but is surprised when Stefan calls and reveals that Damon is dying. He agrees to help out. Meanwhile, Jeremy and Elena arrive at a special outdoor screening of Gone With The Wind. Jeremy is unconvinced, but Elena explains that they need to keep living normal lives until Jenna's death isn't so hard to deal with. Caroline arrives with picnic food and tries to keep their spirits up. Stefan and Bonnie go to the witches' house and Bonnie explains that she will try to summon Emily. Emily ends up possessing her body and Stefan asks how to heal a werewolf bite. Emily refuses to give him an answer, explaining that there is a natural balance to everything and maybe Damon deserves to die. She does hint that there is a cure, though. Suddenly, Bonnie screams and clutches her head. She explains that the witches don't want her there as she is abusing their power. However, she reveals that she heard them saying that Klaus is the key to a cure.

Meanwhile, at the police station, Carol Lockwood tells Sheriff Liz Forbes that she is unhappy with her progress in ridding the town of vampires. Liz insists that she is handling it, but Carol threatens to replace her if she doesn't get some results soon. Stefan arrives at the screening and pulls Elena aside to talk. He explains that Damon has a werewolf bite and admits that he could die. Elena is upset that she pushed Damon aside when he tried to apologize earlier and Stefan explains that he wanted her to know in case she wants to talk to him. He explains that he is going to speak to Klaus to find a cure, adding that if Klaus wanted him dead, he would have killed him by now. He points out that he was the one who made Damon a vampire and he owes it to him to find a cure.

Back at the Salvatore house, Damon has a flashback and remembers speaking to Katherine in the 1860s. She asks if he will miss her while he is off fighting and he says he will, but points out that she will still have Stefan. Katherine asks if it is so wrong for her to want them both. However, Damon hallucinates that Elena has joined them. Elena tells him that Katherine was just toying with him and he could have walked away - he had a choice. Back in the present, Damon realizes that his bite is getting worse.

Klaus bites Katherine giving her the werewolf cure his blood

Stefan goes over to Alaric's apartment to see Katherine, who is furious that she is still under Klaus's compulsion and can't leave the building. Stefan asks where Klaus is, but at that moment Klaus and Elijah arrive. Stefan announces that he needs Klaus's help, but Klaus explains that first he has to stick by his deal to Elijah. Elijah explains that his brother gave his word that he would reunite him with his family, but Klaus suddenly appears behind him, saying: "So I shall." He stabs Elijah with the dagger and white ash, killing him. He turns on Stefan and stakes him close to his heart, taunting him that if he moves just slightly he will be killed. Stefan promises to do whatever Klaus wants if he gives him the cure for Damon.

However, Klaus admits that he doesn't know whether Stefan will be any use to him. Later, Klaus talks about Stefan's murderous past, although Stefan says he hasn't been like that for years. However, Klaus says that's the kind of vampire he could make a deal with. He calls Katherine over and bites her, shocking her as she realizes she now has a werewolf bite. He then feeds her his blood and she heals so that Stefan realizes that Klaus' blood is the cure. Klaus says they should begin to talk. Over at the Salvatore house, Alaric brings Damon some alcohol.

Damon asks if Stefan sent him on suicide watch, adding that Stefan is just trying to right the wrongs of the past. He adds that Alaric should hate him as he is the reason Jenna is dead, but Alaric says he doesn't blame Damon. Damon adds that he also turned Isobel into a vampire. He heads over to the door and begins strangling Alaric through the bars, begging him to kill him. Alaric croaks: "Screw you" and stabs Damon with a syringe, causing him to collapse on the floor, asking for Elena. Elena arrives at the house, but as she tries to go, in Liz appears and covers her mouth, telling her not to make a sound. Back in the cellar, Damon asks for blood, but when Alaric goes to get it, Liz appears and asks for Damon. Alaric tells her it's not a good time, but one of Liz's colleagues finds him and calls for her.

They see Damon lying on the floor and break in, but when they do, Damon is no longer on the ground. Instead, he is standing against a wall. He throws Liz against the wall and heads out. Alaric calls Jeremy, who is at the Gone With The Wind screening with Bonnie and Caroline. Jeremy admits that Elena went to see Damon and Alaric warns that he's in bad shape and the cops are after him. He advises Jeremy to get Elena somewhere safe if he finds her.

Bonnie tells Jeremy to wait behind, but Jeremy refuses, saying that for once they can't stop him from getting involved. Elsewhere, Liz takes Elena to the police station and hears that Damon has been spotted in town. Elena tells her that she is wrong to hate the vampires, but Liz points out that they are murderers. Elena begs to accompany her when she goes to get Damon, explaining that he is sick, but Liz asks a guard to make sure Elena is kept at the station. Meanwhile, Damon arrives at the screening and hallucinates, thinking he is seeing Katherine. Jeremy finds him and helps him into the Mystic Grill. Inside, Jeremy calls someone to tell them they are at the Grill. Liz arrives and shoots at Damon, but he rushes off quickly and the bullet hits Jeremy. Liz is shocked and, at that moment, Caroline and Bonnie arrive. Bonnie points out that Jeremy's ring won't work because he was hurt by a human, not a supernatural creature. Caroline feeds Jeremy her blood - much to her mother's shock - but it doesn't work. Bonnie realizes that she knows what to do and takes him away with Alaric, who has just arrived. Meanwhile, back at the station, Elena uses a chair to smash the window and escape.

Alaric and Bonnie take Jeremy to the witches' house and Bonnie tries to use the power of the old witches to revive Jeremy. She casts a spell, but begins to worry as the other witches are angry at her for returning and don't want to help. She says there will be consequences, and Alaric tells her to get them to shut up as Jeremy is just a kid. Bonnie continues to cast the spell, but her nose begins to bleed and she sobs. She calls to Emily, begging her to help as she loves Jeremy. However, the candles go out. Bonnie sobs as she believes Jeremy is dead for good, but then he wakes up. Bonnie hugs him and thanks Emily for helping. Later, she calls Caroline, who informs Liz that Jeremy is alive. Liz is confused as she thought she killed him, and Caroline explains that she did. She adds that she explained before, but had to make Liz forget as she was worried about what she might do. She announces that she doesn't want to lie or be afraid anymore and takes Liz's hand. She says she is still her little girl and the pair hug, crying.

Over at Alaric's apartment, Klaus pours his blood into a vial and asks Stefan if he is ready for a "decade-long bender". Stefan insists that isn't who he is anymore and Klaus is disappointed, saying he would have been a good wingman. He begins to pour the blood away until Stefan stops him. Klaus is pleased and throws him a blood bag, telling him to drink. He adds that he has to finish it all, saying that if Stefan does everything he says, he will save Damon. Stefan drinks it, but Klaus passes him another blood bag and tells him to continue.

Elena runs through the screening looking for Damon. She finds him and drags him away, but as she does Damon gets confused, mixing the present with the past, when he chased Katherine through some woods. He remembers begging Katherine to feed him her blood so they could be together forever. Back in the present, he tries to bite Elena as she begs him to stop, explaining that he is hurting her. Damon suddenly appears to return to the present, but collapses. Elena cradles him, while also covering her neck with her hand. She takes Damon back home and when he wakes up, he tells her to leave as he could hurt her. Elena refuses to go and climbs on to the bed with him, cradling him in her arms. She says: "It's okay", but Damon tells her that it's not. He says he blamed Stefan for years, but no-one forced him to love Katherine. He asks Elena to tell Stefan he is sorry and Elena promises as she begins to cry.

Jeremy returns home and searches on the internet for "back from the dead". Bonnie speaks to him on webcam and he admits that he feels weird, but Bonnie points out that he has just been brought back from the dead and it's bound to feel strange. She jokes that he can thank her "tomorrow and the next day and the next day". They say good night and Alaric appears, explaining that he's going to head off. However, seeing how Jeremy looks, he decides to stay the night. Jeremy thanks him for everything he has done. However, Alaric teases Jeremy by revealing that he overheard Bonnie's suggestion that he thank her "tomorrow and the next day and the next day".

Elena is keeping with Damon until the very end. "As I Lay Dying"

Over at Alaric's apartment, Stefan is hungrily feeding on blood bags, but refuses to drink any more until Klaus sorts out the cure. Klaus tells him that he has a choice to make - he can remain in Mystic Falls or he can embrace what he truly is, leave town with Klaus and save Damon's life. Stefan takes another blood bag and begins to drink. Klaus calls over Katherine and compels her to take his blood to Damon and come right back - but she is still on vervain. Katherine rushes off as Stefan worries that she will never deliver the cure to Damon. Meanwhile, Damon is still in bed with Elena and suggests he deserves to die. However, he says that if he had made different choices he wouldn't have met her. He apologizes for everything he's done to her, but Elena says she forgives him and lies down next to him. Damon tells her he knows she will always love Stefan, but adds that he loves her. Elena begins to cry and says she knows that.

Damon croaks that if she had met him in 1864 she would have liked him, but Elena says she likes him now just the way he is. Damon closes his eyes and she kisses him. "Thank you," he says. However, Katherine appears and says he should be thanking her as she brought the cure. She says she decided to deliver it because she owed Damon. Elena asks after Stefan, but Katherine asks if she really cares. Eventually, she reveals that Stefan is paying for the cure. She explains that he gave himself over to Klaus and sacrificed everything - including Elena - to save Damon. However, she tells Elena that at least she will have Damon to keep her company. "It's okay to love them both," she adds. "I did." She throws the cure at Damon and walks away.

Stefan killing for Klaus

Elsewhere, Klaus shuts the lid of Elijah's coffin and tells some undertakers to put him with "the others". Stefan receives a text from Elena, explaining that Damon is okay and asking where he is. Klaus asks if Katherine made it in time, and reveals that he knew she was on vervain. However, he adds that she won't get very far and adds that Stefan will help him with that. Stefan asks what he wants and Klaus promises that everything will be explained once they leave town. He adds that he has a gift for Stefan and calls over a terrified young girl. He explains that he wants to make sure Stefan will be of use to him and bites her neck. He adds that he could have compelled the woman but a "real ripper enjoys the hunt". He throws her away and she runs away screaming, but Stefan rushes in front of her and drains her of blood until she collapses on the floor. Klaus is impressed and says that they can leave now.

The episode ends with Jeremy, who believes he has heard a sound. He thinks it is Alaric, but as he looks over the stairs, someone appears behind him. They soon disappear again. He walks downstairs, but is shocked to see Anna standing in the kitchen. When he turns around, Vicki is standing there.

Elena tells Damon that she likes him, and kisses him for the first time while he is dying from a werewolf bite (It's heavily debated whether she just meant it then or if she was just afraid he was going to die).

Damon feeds on Elena for the first and only time in the series as he suffering from the effects of the werewolf venom, Elena stops Damon from feeding on her before he can kill her as he's hallucinating.

Katherine admits she loved both Damon and Stefan and tells Elena it is okay for her to do so.

In this episode it is shown that after Elena died in the sacrifice, her ownership of the Salvatore Boarding House was broken and uninvited vampires could no longer be kept out.

This is the series' first "coda" episode. A "coda" episode, which is the final produced episode of a season, is a plot device used to resolve secondary plotlines in the season's main arc that were not fully addressed or resolved during the actual finale, which is the penultimate episode The Sun Also Rises.

This the second episode in a row that one of the Gilbert siblings is revived by Bonnie.

This is the first episode to feature an original neutralizing another original.

As I Lay Dying is the title of author William Faulkner's fourth novel, published in 1930. The title derives from Book XI of The Odyssey, wherein Agamemnon speaks to Odysseus: "As I lay dying, the woman with the dog's eyes would not close my eyes as I descended into Hades."

Stefan was the "Ripper of Monterey." Many serial killers are known as rippers, the most famous being Jack the Ripper. But this is also a Buffy reference, because Giles, Buffy's watcher, was also known as "The Ripper" when he was young.

Klaus says that "Ripper" Stefan would "make a hell of a wingman." This foreshadows events in the third season. Wingman refers to a support pilot flying just behind the lead pilot, but also as a friend who helps other to approach potential partners. It was popularized in the movie Top Gun. The expression is used often by Barney Stinson, from How I met your Mother.

Elena tells Damon that she likes him "just the way you are." This is the name of a 1977 song by Billy Joel, made popular recently by the Shrek franchise. The verses "Don't go changing, to try and please me ...I took the good times, I'll take the bad times" are particularly meaningful in this episode. It is also the name of Bruno Mars' debut song.

Superman, is a fictional character, a comic book superhero who appears in comic books published by DC Comics. He is widely considered to be an American cultural icon.

Behind the Scenes

This episode had about 2.86 million viewers in the USA which was 0.06 million more than the previous episode.

Quotes

Klaus: "I heard about this one vampire, crazy bloke, always on-and-off the wagon for decades. When he was off, he was magnificent. 1917 he went into Monterrey and wiped out an entire migrant village. True Ripper. Sound familiar?"

Bonnie (To Jeremy): "You were dead. It would be weird if you felt normal."

Damon (To Elena about Katherine): "All those years I blamed Stefan. But no one forced me to love her. It was my own choice. I made the wrong choice. Tell Stefan I’m sorry."

Damon (To Elena): "I’ve made a lot of choices that have gotten me here. I deserve this. I deserve to die. It’s okay, because if I’d have chosen differently, I wouldn’t have met you. I’m so sorry. I’ve done so many things to hurt you."